Kaela’s fictional university day. Practical tasks first; Japanese is entirely optional.
Focused Markdown notes with original text preserved. Synthetic study material; saved in this browser.
A separate, optional Japanese card with pronunciation shown. Keep it only if you choose.
Review an explicitly saved example phrase. Reveal the meaning, then choose Again or Remembered.
Actual web MCP requests and a persisted review. A self-hosted web demo, not an Alexa+ device session.

Your day comes first

Kaela has classes to get to, a group project to prepare, and notes to reread. She is curious about Japanese, but she does not need another task on her list.

Alexa-chan explores a simple idea: Alexa helps Kaela get through her day, and a little Japanese can join that conversation only when she wants it.

One small adventure

Imagine Kaela asking, “Alexa-chan, what’s on my day?” She gets the useful answer first. Then, if she is curious, she can ask how to say that in Japanese.

She can hear a phrase, discover its meaning, and choose to keep it for another day. Or she can move on. Nothing plays automatically, and exploring a phrase never silently adds it to her review cards.

The manga-inspired city and motorcycle ride give this everyday journey a sense of adventure. Kaela is the example character. Alexa-chan is the companion at the centre of the idea.

Her notes stay hers

After class, Kaela rereads her notes on a quiet, separate screen. The app never rewrites what she wrote. Her original text and Markdown stay in her browser, and she can back them up.

An optional Japanese card waits separately, without interrupting a long note. She chooses whether to open it, listen, or save the phrase.

What works today

The working web demo includes a fictional university day, original study notes, listening, explicit phrase saving, and later review. A self-hosted MCP server powers the example-day tools and saved example cards.

The video distinguishes the imagined Alexa conversation from the working web app. This prototype is not connected to a live university calendar or directly to an Alexa+ device.

What we built and learned

We built the web experience with SvelteKit, a Three.js ride, and a Node.js MCP service. Codex helped with implementation and testing; generated manga artwork and ElevenLabs narration bring Kaela’s story to life.

The biggest challenge was keeping Japanese optional. A useful day and readable notes must come first. Next, we want real student trials and a competent Japanese speaker to review the phrases.

Your day. Your pace. A little Japanese along the way.